


Ice Cream with a side of Pining

by basementhero



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, mutual obliviousness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-23
Updated: 2015-08-23
Packaged: 2018-04-16 08:01:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4617666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/basementhero/pseuds/basementhero
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Niall's promised Theo ice cream cupcakes, but doesn't have a key ingredient. Cue neighbors helping neighbors, in the form of a very infatuated Harry.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ice Cream with a side of Pining

**Author's Note:**

> An excuse for fluff

Harry has just settled down with some strawberries and whipped cream and an episode of GBBO he recorded last week when a frantic knock on his front door causes him to jump out of his seat, spilling himself and the strawberries onto the floor. 

The knocking continues as he picks himself up and grumbles curses under his breath all the way to the door.

“ _What_?” he roars in the face of his disturbance.

And then he curses himself because _fuck_ , it’s the cute guy from down the hall that Harry’s fancied pretty much since the blonde moved in two months ago. He thinks the guy’s name is Myles or something, he’s never talked to him, but the cheery morning waves he’s gotten in the hallway have pretty much been the highlight of his days. One time they were checking their mail at the same time and they brushed arms, and instead of being creeped out, the guy _blushed_ , so Harry’s pretty convinced their relationship is progressing steadily. Or it would be, if he hadn’t just _screamed_ at the poor guy, who’s looking like a deer caught in headlights.

“Bloody hell, I’m so sorry, you just--you caught me at a bad time,” Harry tries to apologize, sheepishly rubbing at the back of his neck.

“I--um… I was--d’you have any ice cream?” the blonde splutters.

“Ice cream?” Harry repeats dumbly. He was expecting...well, he wasn’t actually expecting anything, but ice cream seemed a little out of the ordinary. 

“Yeah, I promised my nephew we’d make ice cream cupcakes but I don’t actually have any ice cream. So I was hoping I could borrow some?”

Harry’s mouth opens and closes like a fish for a bit because he really doesn’t know what to do with himself now that he’s heard the Irish accent; he didn’t even know he was attracted to Irish accents, but apparently he is and this is ridiculous, because the guy just wants some ice cream, not Harry staring at him.

“I don’t have any either, actually,” he admits reluctantly. 

He’s trying to eat healthier, but damn if he doesn’t regret that decision now. He could’ve swooped in like a knight in shining armor, ice cream carton in hand-- _shit_ , Harry thinks frantically, what if Zayn on the floor below them has some? Zayn’s cheekbones are literally godlike and there’s no way this blonde, Irish ball of sunshine will be able to resist such perfection, especially if it’s offering him the dessert item he so desperately needs. Harry feels like he might cry.

“But I can go get some!” he shouts instead.

The blonde looks surprised, and also like he thinks Harry might seriously need to consider getting his head checked out. “What? No--you don’t have to--Theo and I can just have regular cupcakes, mate, it’s not--”

“You promised him ice cream cupcakes, though! I’ll just go get some and bring it to you!” Harry grins at his own brilliant plan. Surely this will keep the guy securely away from Zayn’s face and maybe even nudge him towards Harry’s arms. “What flavor do you want? Chocolate? Vanilla? Mint chocolate chip? Pistachio? Str--”

“You really don’t have to do this.”

“I want to.”

The two stare at each other for a moment, and Harry’s very much enjoying the other’s bright blue eyes.

The shorter man seems to make up his mind and grins up at Harry. “‘m Niall.”

“Harry.”

“I know… I mean, uh--I heard...from...um, Zayn. Yeah, he mentioned you.” Niall blushes just as gorgeously as he did the first time all those weeks ago, and Harry’s so focused on it he doesn’t even catch most of Niall’s sentence, except--

“Wait, Zayn? You’ve met Zayn?” 

“O’ course. We went out for a pint--”

Harry feels his shoulders slumping in defeat. He’s only just gotten Niall’s name and Zayn’s already swooped in and stolen him.

“--with his fiancée.”

“Zayn’s engaged?”

“Yes?” Niall stretches the word out in confusion.

“Oh.”

“Uncle Ni!” A high-pitched voice calls from down the hall. “It’s beeping!”

“I’ve gotta go--” Niall pivots on his heel to head back to his flat.

“You didn’t say what flavor you wanted.”

“You don’t need to--”

“What flavor?” Harry puts on his most charming smile, confidence renewed.

“Vanilla?”

“I’ll be back in 20.”

\-----

It actually takes Harry half an hour to get the ice cream because he wasn’t actually prepared to go out when he gave his initial estimate and then he had to find his wallet and then get to the shop and then he couldn’t decide what brand of vanilla ice cream to get and would french vanilla or vanilla bean taste better? and then the cashier wanted to flirt with him and basically Harry had to run up the stairs in their building just to make it in under 45 minutes. He’s out of breath and sweaty and wishing he went to the gym more often by the time he makes it to Niall’s door; he’s got the ice cream, though, and that ought to count for something.

The door is flung open almost immediately after he knocks--kind of like Niall was waiting right next to it for him, but that’s clearly silly because Niall isn’t half as infatuated with Harry as Harry is with Niall.

“Harry! You made it!” Niall beams at him, and yeah, it’s totally worth the burning in his calves from all those stairs.

“Sorry I’m late.” 

 

“It’s fine,” Niall waves off Harry’s apology as he opens the door wider so Harry can step inside.

Niall’s flat is pretty much the same layout as Harry’s, but the blonde doesn’t appear to have the same touch of OCD. That’s not to say that his flat is messy, it’s just less tidy than Harry’s. 

A little boy sprints out of the back hallway and straight into Niall’s legs; this must be the nephew Niall promised desserts to--Theo, Harry thinks he heard.

“Theo, this is Mr. Harry,” Niall introduces them. “He brought the ice cream for us.”

Theo smiles up at Harry cutely. Harry’s always had a soft spot for kids, and this one is no exception, especially since he’s attached to the object of Harry’s affections. 

Niall leads Harry to the kitchen, where at least two dozen chocolate cupcakes are covering the counters. Harry has to hold in a laugh when he realizes that the cupcakes have been baked in papers decorated with shamrocks. 

“Irish pride?” he chuckles.

“Fu--dge yes,” Niall narrowly corrects himself. 

Theo doesn’t notice, as he’s too busy pulling the ice cream carton out of Harry’s hands and standing on his tip toes to slide it onto the counter beside his uncle.

Upon closer inspection, Harry realizes that all the cupcakes have craters in them. He would ask where the missing cake bits went, but he has a feeling that he already knows the answer. 

“D’you want one?” the blonde asks after pulling open a drawer and beginning to rummage around in it.

“I dunno...How do I know you didn’t poison them?” Harry teases.

Niall gasps in mock offense, and then he lets out an adorable cheer when he finally pulls the ice cream scoop out of his drawer. Harry didn’t think he could fancy the other man any more than he already did, but he’s happy to be proven wrong.

The blonde expertly pulls the lid off of the ice cream and proceeds to scoop some of the frozen dairy treat into one of the cupcake craters, which he then carefully picks up and lowers to show Theo, who stares over the edge of the counter as best he can for his height.

“What d’you think, Theo? Needs sprinkles?”

Theo nods enthusiastically.

The multi-colored sprinkles go on perhaps a bit overzealously, but Theo seems pleased when the finished product is handed over to him, and Niall’s grin is definitely one of pride. Harry’s never seen someone so...so...he can’t find the word he’s looking for, but it’s a bit like magnificent only more so.

“See? Not poisoned,” Niall uses his nephew as an example. The kid is devouring his dessert without reserve for how cold the ice cream must be on his teeth.

“I suppose not.”

“Sprinkles?” Niall offers as the ice cream plops into the nest of cake.

Would Niall like Harry better if he says yes? The little sugar pieces can’t be enough to seriously kill his diet any more than the cake and ice cream is already going to, he supposes. 

“Why not?”

Niall’s more gentle with the shaking this time, disappointing because the little dance his whole body did in sync with his wrist was captivating. Harry kind of wanted to slide up behind him and just _feel_ \-- _and_ there’s a little kid present, Harry remembers suddenly, who’s looking up at him curiously through his shaggy blonde hair. He takes his dessert with a helping of shame, not making eye contact with Niall because he knows his cheeks are on fire and he doesn’t want Niall to read the reason in his eyes.

They eat their desserts in silence, Harry and Niall, while Theo eats a second cupcake happily. Harry can’t process how to be a normal human being right now; he just knows if he tries to speak to Niall again it’s going to end in him saying something embarrassing--or _worse_ , he may just accidentally pin Niall to the counter and kiss his stupid face. That would be both harassment and inappropriate for their young audience.

It’s not until Niall’s cleaning up his nephew--good with kids, another reason Niall’s perfect--that everything goes to shit. Harry can’t help but watch, even if it is a bit creepy, and Theo’s not as oblivious as he clearly should be. The kid’s got to be five, maximum, but he’s apparently got the eye of a hawk and the filter of...well, of a child.

“Is Mr. Harry your boyfriend, Uncle Ni?”

Harry wants to _die_. He’s going to throw himself into the nearest volcano or at least off the nearest balcony. He doesn’t want to hear the indirect rejection, doesn’t want to have his chances with Niall clearly spelled out for him at nil.

Only it doesn’t happen because Niall’s speechless. And red as a lobster. And he peeks over his shoulder at Harry guiltily? What’s _he_ got to be sorry for? Harry’s the one with a creepy crush.

“Is that why he brought us more ice cream?”

“Theo!” Niall hisses, but not in time to stop Harry from hearing the question.

_More_ ice cream? 

“What?” Harry says intelligently.

“I--uh--” Niall stutters (rather endearingly). “I actually had...well, I have ice cream. In the freezer. Always do.”

Harry’s very puzzled. “Then why did you…?”

If possible, Niall blushes harder. It seems to travel from his face down his neck and if Harry wasn’t so focused on being confused, he would’ve been wondering just how far down that blush goes and if it would be inappropriate to ask if he could follow it with his lips.

“I’ve maybe fancied you for...a while, now, um… Thought maybe I’d make up an excuse to talk to you… It was stupid, I know--”

It was completely, utterly brilliant, actually. Harry’s a bit annoyed that he didn’t think of such a thing himself. As it is, he takes the opportunity to pull Niall in by his hips and kiss the living daylights out of him. Theo skips off to watch telly, his job done.

**Author's Note:**

> I tried to research whether or not sprinkles and cupcakes are called something else in England/Ireland, but I got a lot of conflicting information. If it really bothers you, just give me the definitive answer and I'll change it.


End file.
